Bustin out the mandolin...again:)

Raise your hand if it's H-O-T where you are!

Man, we went from spring to the 4th of July this week!  Hot & humid all around.  Thank you Jesus for that lovely invention called air conditioning.  I always feel very lucky to have oneJ  Thankfully it's suppose to be sunny & 70's next week, so that's QUITE a better way to transition into full blown summer!

Thursday Recap:

8:00am:  Hot Lemon Water

9:00am:  Coffee with 1% & agave

10:00am:  Breakfast- Flax seed pancake

This time with a little coconut butter...yum!!  Although not as filing as with the peanut butter.  By 11, I was ready for lunchJ  But I kept myself busy (chasing around little feetJ) until lunch time.

12:00:  Lunch- Leftover Spicy Peanut Chicken 

I knew I needed something with some 'legs' for lunchJ  And while it seemed completely unseasonable, I heated this up till it was SUPER hot so it took me a long time to eatJ  (again, thank God for that air conditioner!  I can't say Scott is as lucky while working outside during his lunch:( )

2:30pm:  Snack- Nutella and animal crackers 

Yep, this happened.  This happened or I was going to claw my eyes outJ hahahahhaa  I had been thinking of  something sweet since 11am, and when 2:30 rolled around and the craving STILL hadn't passed, I figured it was OK to indulge a bit.  I DID count out those animal crackers (16 for 120 calories, not that bad!) and around 2 tablespoons of Nutella I started to feel queasy...so I figured that was a good indication of a servingJ  It must have been what I really wanted/"needed" though, because I felt satisfied the rest of the afternoon right up until dinner.

5:00-6:00pm:  Body Jam class

Track #62 last night (with the flying barrel rolls!) and my ass was officially KICKED!  

7:00pm:  Dinner- Zucchini "noodles" with Basil ricotta!

Yep, it was time to bust out the ole mandolin again last night to zip up some quick zucchini noodles! (or summer squash works here too)

FYI- I usually lop off both ends and then CAREFULLY run the zucchini over the "thin julienne" blade.  Once the zucchini gets a little THIN on the side you're slicing, just flip to another side and keep going until you are NEAR the end.  (PLEASE don't attempt the shred once it gets too close!  Either toss or hand slice those last few pieces) 

Slicing takes less than 10 minutes & a quick saute in the pan takes another 5.  Seriously folks, I KNOW this sounds tricky, but it's really a SUPER fast meal that is perfect for these summer months when zucchini is at its PEAK abundance! 

While the "noodles" are cooking, I whipped up a QUICK 'basil ricotta'... 

• 1 cup part skim ricotta (probably could have used alittle less...I got over excitedJ)
• 1/4 cup grated cheese
• About 5-6 fresh basil leaves (or more.  That's just all I had leftoverJ)
• salt & pepper to taste

You can either add the basil ricotta right to that zucchini and let it melt down OR just dollop it on top and take little bites as you go along!  I loved the hot & cold contrast.

They really DO whirl up just like regular noodles!  The longer you saute them, the more they really take on the pliability of pasta.  I think almost better than spaghetti squash... 

It was a hit all aroundJ  Katie picked up EVERY last biteJ 

Well, I hope you guys have lots 'o summer fun planned this weekend.  Our weekend is the kick-off of Scott's vacation week, so we're SUPER excited to have him around with us ALL WEEK!  Weeeeeeeee!  Can't wait to take Katie on some new 'adventures' next weekJ

Have a great weekend!

Pesto, minus the food processor!

Wednesday Recap:

OK...so this day is nearly identical to Tuesday, but I guess that shows all the new stuff really WAS good. huh?J  But this post DEFINITELY ends with a 'hot weather recipe.'  UGH...how gross is it out there, NJ????

8:00am:  Coffee with 1% and agave

9:30am: Flaxseed pancakes

Made with about a teaspoon of agave.  Honestly, I don't even know if that's needed once you put any topping on it.  This one was bursting with cinnamon, which may just make it sweet enough.

10:30-11:45am:  Power yoga

I think I may change the name of this class to 'humid yoga.'  Holy hell, it was HOT!!!!!

12:00pm:  Avocado tuna salad 

Usually yoga holds my hunger at bay for awhile (especially when it's so hot!), but I came home STARVING yesterday.  Thank God this comes together in 0.2 seconds.  And it took a lottttttttttttt of effort & distraction to NOT reach for anything else once the bowl was empty and to give the hunger a minute to wane.

2:00:  Chocolate ricotta cream 

...and distractions only got me this far before I realized my sweet tooth was NEEDING to be satisfied!J

I replaced the Splenda with agave in this mix and while it wasn't AS sweet, it was just sweet enough.  All in all, I guess I used about a tablespoon of agave the entire day which is an added 60 calories.  And from the way I look at it, 60 calories is not the difference between skinny & fat.  Ditch those no-calorie sweeteners, folks!J

5:30pm:  'Deconstructed Pesto' salad!

Full disclosure: I was starving to the point of agitated by 5. (fun for Scott, I knowJ)  I probably could have used another snack in there, but instead I decided to bump dinner up even earlier than usualJ   Besides I was super excited about itJ

Taking a page from how much I liked pesto mixed into my salad LAST week, I decided to 'break down' the ingredients and create a salad with alllll the flavors and without the food processorJ  And given my super agitated state, I'm glad this salad come together super fast!

Ingredient #1:  Grilled chicken coated in Montreal Steak seasoning (thinking I might coat it in crushed GARLIC next timeJ) 

Ingredient #2:  Toasted walnuts (or pine nuts) which I dry roast and toss around a pan over medium low heat until golden brown.  

Ingredient #3:  Chopped fresh basil  (mmmmmm...I just LOVE that smell!) 

Ingredients #4, 5 & 6J :  A quick dressing made of olive oil, salt & a sprinkle of grated cheese 

 Oh yeah...and the lettuce!  Don't forget the lettuceJ

I tossed the lettuce with the dressing ingredients & the basil, topped it with the chicken & walnuts and WALLAH!  How easy is that??

All the taste of pesto rolled into one delicious salad.  The grated cheese is KEY here folks, so don't be skimpy!  It really gave the salad the pesto-flavor PUNCH.  Try this one on one of these gross, hot nights.  It couldn't be simpler and it'll keep the heat OUTTA the kitchen! 

9:00pm:  Hot lemon water

So I've been 'off' of lemon water for a few months because I figured I hadn't really been very 'crave-y (and lemon water always seems to quell cravings) so I didn't need it too much.  But after 3 months of upping my cardio (with the 1-hour boxing & body jam classes) while seeing BARELY any change to the scale, I'm starting to wonder if the lemon water somehow just helps my body kick my metabolism into high-er gear??  All I know is I consistently lost weight from January until March and since March it's been like PULLING TEETH.  I'll keep you up to date on this little experiment, but I know I did have a cup last week and felt much 'skinner' in the morning.  We'll see!!!!!!

Have a good Thursday!J

Lies...and stew...

OK, so I totally lied.  I said I was going to have a new salad recipe for you today, but it was just wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy too gloomy & rainy for salads last night.  

But I DO have a bunch of healthy new things to share with you guys, including a recipe for the NEXT time gloomy weather rolls your way!

Tuesday Recap:

8:00am:  Coffee with Splenda & 1%

Yes...in an attempt to 'detox' from sugar/carbs a bit, I actually caved and had Splenda yesterday (first time in 2 years!).  Which was all fun and games until around 4 o'clock when my head felt all spin-y and gross.  Needless to say, my Splenda consumption ended around that time and will not be returning again.  Agave is back to replacing all sugar/Splenda in recipes for the time being.J

9:30:  Breakfast- FLAX pancake!

So you know I LOVE my protein pancakes, but I stumbled on this recipe on Pinterest for Flax seed pancakes that I thought I'd like it even better.  

• 3 tablespoons flax seed meal
• 2 tablespoons almond meal
• 1/4-1/2 cup egg substitute (depending on how thin you like your 'cakes, I like mine on the 'heartier' side)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Agave (or sugar/Splenda)

Whirl it all up in a mini food processor and cook like a regular pancake...

Side note:  After a quick Google search, I discovered a quick way to make almond meal (without running to the grocery store) is to toss some almonds into a coffee grinder and pulse it a few times until it forms a thin powder.  (Careful not to pulse to many times or you'll end up with almond BUTTER!!!!)

You're also suppose to pass it through a sieve to find any larger chucks of almonds, but I just left it like this.  I love me a little texture in there!

A little chunky peanut butter on top and I was in business...

I have to say I REALLLLLLY loved these!  While the protein pancakes have a creamy/French toast kinda taste, these tasted like hearty pancakes like my ole beloved whole wheat/flax 'cakes, minus the carbs!  Definitely making these again...(OK, full disclosure:  I already had one today tooJ)

1:00pm:  Lunch- Avocado/tuna salad

And just as I suspected, I had perfectly ripe avocados yesterday which led to the most excellent mayo sub!  If those avocados aren't as ripe as they should be, I will admit:  you might miss the mayo.  But the ripe ones make it perfectly creamy and delicious.  1/2 mashed avocado + 1/2 can of tuna + a little onion = Delish!

3:00pm:  Snack- Chocolate Ricotta Cream

Oh folks, THIS was a good one!  Go home and make this tonight for dessert!

• 1/2 cup part-skin Ricotta cheese
• 1/2 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon sugar/Splenda/Agave

This tasted JUST like chocolate flavored CANNOLI CREAM!  It was soooooooooooooooo good!  Now I only tried it with 1 tsp Splenda and it was sweet enough against the cocoa powder, but I'll swap the sugars today (cause I'm DEF making it again!) and see if it changes the flavor with the Agave.  It was the perfect FILLING afternoon sweet tooth fix.  And so easy to make in advance & bring for work!

6:00:  Dinner- Spicy Peanut Chicken

This is one of our old favorite that I realized I hadn't' made in over 3 years (aka-since I started this blogJ)  But oohhh, the next time the weather drops below 70, do yourself a favor and MAKE THIS!

And it's super easy.  The 'toughest' part was dicing & cooking the onion & chicken.  After that you just toss in the rest of the ingredients and let it slow simmer for about a half hour...

I used 2 cans of diced tomatoes & about 3/4 a cup of chicken broth, since it's what we had on hand.  I thought the stew consistency was pretty spot on, but adjust it to the way you would like it.

For the spices, I also just added about a tablespoon of gama masala (homemade recipe in this post) & about a teaspoon of chili powder and enough salt to bring out all the flavors.  Again, adjust according to your tastes!

Oh...and while I boiled up some rice to have alongside for Scott in the last 10 minutes, I also added in a drained can of black beans. Because I heart themJ

Topped with a dollop of non-fat Greek yogurt and this stew hit the spot PERFECTLY.  The sauce had the velvety taste like it had been simmering for HOURS.  But it TRULY couldn't have been simpler.  Should I say it again??  Well, here ya go: You MUST make this!

It was really filling too.  I had about 1/4 of the bowl left when I realized I was FULL.  So SOMEONE decided to help me out...

All while honing her silverware skills....WITH assistanceJ hahahahahahhaha

That's a joint effort HAPPY PLATEJ hahahahah

And in exercise news...well, there wasn't much to speak of yesterday.  However, last week I noticed ye old 8 weights were not feeling as 'powerful' as they used to.  And since I haven't made it out to the store to buy some new 10's, I did the next best thing and just combined a couple I had aroundJ

Whatever works!

I've been doing an arm set (12 each: bicep curls, lateral raises, tricep kickbacks, overhead presses & rows) a night with the new '11's' for about a week and can already feel the difference.  I did 2 sets last night and it really felt GREAT.  My shoulders just felt STRONG, which always makes me happyJ

ALRIGHT!  That's a lot for one day!  New salad recipe coming tomorrow, GUARANTEED!  It's certainly salad weather TODAY.

Have a good Wednesday!

Pure Americana...

Morning everyone!  Hope you guys had a GREAT Memorial day weekend!  I must say ours was really lots 'o fun from start to finish.  And even after our Saturday of food-craziness, there was even MORE to be had over the next 2 daysJ

First up was a picnic of some all-American favorites on Sunday night...

Hot dogs (and hamburgers), "Bloom Baked Beans" (our friend's beans that are perfect!), classic wavy chips (my kryptonite!) and some of our friend's excellent homemade potato salad...

...as well as the 'first corn of the summer.'  (Although not Jersey corn yet!)

No clue what Katie is doing in the picture on the right, but it cracked me upJ

Memorial day was made even nicer by the fact that the weather was actually "Labor Day perfection":  Low 70's/NO HUMIDITY!  It was the first Memorial Day picnic we've had on the sunporch (and NOT blasting the air conditioner) in YEARS!  Simply heaven to meJ

And since it was chilly, I thought a sorta/kinda 'warm' dessert might be fun.  First up were the patriotic trio of blueberries, strawberries & an abnormally huge bowl of homemade whipped cream...

Then the 'warm' part:  Grilled pound cake.  YUM!  I love a little char on anythingJ

And what 'All-American' picnic would be complete without that ole Italian favorite, Nutella??J  America IS the great melting pot after all...I mean, right???J

Warm cake + ice cream + hoodies on the sunporch = My kinda picnicJ

Memorial day morning we woke up bright & early to deck Katie out in her patriotic finest & head off to see our niece in her marching band parade..

Katie watched like a true lady...  

Although we can't tell if she was stunned...or unimpressedJ

On the food front, I tried to keep the beginning part of the day as "light" as possible.  And even though the FAINTEST glimmer of 'bagel on the way to the parade' skirted through my brain, I thought it was MUCH wiser to bring along something I knew would be a smarter choice...

While keeping my lunch & snacks equally as light and filling..

(and patriotic!J)

Anddddd that's before the craziness unleashed again!  But how can you pass up the chance to spend an absolutely weather PERFECT Memorial day in one of our countries best cities (AGAINJ)

 And how can ya get more American than indulging in one of the countries BEST sandwiches, the Philly cheesesteak, at one of its prime locations???

(And we were far from the only folks with the same idea...)

About an hour after joining the end of the line & the sweet victory of a snagging a table, we finally were able to crack into the goods... 

This thing was HUGE!!!!!!!!!!

Now I've always been a Pat's girl of the Pat's & Geno's 'cheesesteak wars' throughout the years, but South Philly's Tony Luke's just may take the new crown.  They were sheer perfection!  PACKED with perfectly seasoned meat, sweet fried onions and a perfect amount of my favorite cheesesteak topping:  CHEESE WIZ!  (ya just gotta do it!)

I managed about 1/2 of that bad bear, mixed with a few bites of Scott's Roast Pork/Provolone/Broccoli Rabe sandwich (which was excellent, but my pick still goes with DiNic'sJ) 

This was a completely decadent, supremely messy and CRAZY delicious way to celebrate AmericaJ  Worth every last ounce of 'detoxing' that's to come this week...hahahahahahaha!

Oh yeah, but I should mention that the 'celebrating' didn't stop there, as we HAD to make a trip to a place that celebrates old Americana at it's finest: 

Franklin Fountain is the most charming ice cream parlor you will ever step foot in.  Everything from the decor  to the ice cream recipes are purely classic America. 

All with Big Ben keeping a watchful eye...J

After waiting in another wrap-around line, we grabbed another seat to enjoy the goods (take-out orders are served up in Chinese food take-out containers!)...

My friend & I decided to split the "Stock Market Crash," which was rocky road ice cream topped with peanut butter sauce, salty pretzel bites & their housemade whipped cream... 

(hmmm...apparently Rocky Road ice cream was concocted during the great depression 'to give folks something to smile about' during that time...totally fascinating!)

My friend & I managed to smile through....maybe...a few more bites than this pictureJ  The sundae was SUPER rich and sharing would be a definite MUSTJ  And even though I LOVEEE sweet & salty, I had to sneak a few bites of JUST the ice cream.  Franklin Fountain just makes it SOOO pure & simple.  It's just happiness on a spoonJ

Our other friend got the classic Mount Vesuvius, while Scott indulged in "The Lightening Rod"... 

Brownies topped with coffee ice cream, a shot of espresso, hot fudge (they were out of espresso beans!), whipped cream and topped off with a pretzel aka. lightening rod.  I only managed a bite of the coffee ice cream and it was SUPPPPPERRRR strong & bitter.  If you need a JOLT, I have a feeling this sundae would keep me awake for DAYSJ hahahahahhaha

And after our ice cream, we headed back home to end the night around our friend's new fire pit since it was PERFECTLY chilly & Fall-like night out...BLISS!

But brace yourself, East Coasters...the heat IS A-COMING!!!  Starting tomorrow, we are going from mid-70's to 90/hot & humid.  Yeesh!  So both the heat andddddddddd a DETOX are on their way after the ABSURD amount of deliciousness this weekend!  I'm going to try a few light/carb-less days to really kick things up a notch.  Hopefully they work to BALANCE out all of this craziness!  

Hope you guys had a wonderful weekend and I'll be back with HEALTHY & a new salad 'recipe' tomorrow!

Have a great Tuesday!!!J